The Spanish House
by Susan Rissi Tregoning
Title
The Spanish House
Artist
Susan Rissi Tregoning
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
This Spanish House was built in the late 1790s while all of the Grand Gulf area was still owned by Spain. Constructed of Cypress, Poplar and Heart Pine, it was put together with wooden pegs instead of nails.
The front yard of the home is the location of the Civil War-era Fort Wade where Confederates held off the Union naval bombardment in 1863. The house received considerable damage in the skirmish; it was repaired after the war and then restored in 1958.
Grand Gulf Military Park, is located on land that was once the town of Grand Gulf, a now extinct Mississippi River Port. In its heyday, it was 76 square blocks with 1000 to 1500 people living here. The population’s rapid decline started with a yellow fever epidemic and then a tornado struck the town. Finally, the river changed course taking 50 city blocks with it. What was left, the Civil War finished off.
It is said; no town in Mississippi felt the sting of the Civil War worse than Grand Gulf. When the Union started working its way up the river, Baton Rouge and Natchez fell quickly, but Vicksburg refused to surrender. With the waterways blocked the Union transports were left waiting near Grand Gulf. Confederate forces were sent to fire on the Union boats. In reprisal, the Union fired on the town. After four weeks of constant bombardment, Union forces partially burned Grand Gulf. Undaunted, Confederates continued their attack, and the Union retaliated by torching what remained.
Other than the Military Park Museum and a few historical buildings collected from the area, Grand Gulf is a ghost town and now part of Port Gibson, Mississippi.
Copyright 2019 Susan Rissi Tregoning
Uploaded
November 6th, 2019
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